AGENDA #5d
MEMORANDUM
FROM: W. Calvin Horton, Town Manager
SUBJECT: Information Report: Response to Petition Regarding OWASA’s Hilltop Property
DATE: May 21, 2001
This report responds to a request by the Greenways Commission to upgrade and maintain an existing informal trail on the Orange Water and Sewer Authority (OWASA) Hilltop Property. We recommend that no action be taken at this time.
On January 22, 1996 the Council adopted a resolution granting a Special Use Permit to OWASA for construction of a 1.5 million gallon storage tank at the 16.97-acre Hilltop site, located at the end of Hilltop Street. The permit was conditioned on, among others, the following stipulation:
That the remainder of the 16.97 acres of the site, outside the areas shown for
construction of the tank, access road and storm drainage facilities shall
remain as undisturbed vegetated area. The fact that the remainder of the
16.97 acres is to remain undisturbed must be noted on the plat.
On April 12, 1999, a citizen petitioned the Council to encourage the Town to pursue ownership of OWASA’s Nunn Mountain and Hilltop sites. The response to the petition is attached.
On February 14, 2001, the Greenways Commission presented to the Council its Response to Questions: Use of Utility Corridors, Use of OWASA lands, and Methods to Achieve Greenways Master Plan. The report recommended that, “the Town explore the possibility of working with OWASA to provide a neighborhood oriented, natural surface trail through the site. Any proposal would likely require a small amount of parking on OWASA property as well as a greenway easement.” Please see pages 7-8 of the attached Greenways Commission report.
In February 2001, the Council received a letter from the Westside Neighborhood Association noting that the Hilltop Water Tower Special Use Permit prohibits development of the site outside of the area currently used for the water tower. Please see the attached copy of the February 16, 2001 letter.
Description: The Hilltop property is located to the south of Hilltop Street, to the north of Laurel Ridge Apartments, and to the west of Raintree Lane (Tandler Subdivision). It is almost completely surrounded by private property. The property is used by OWASA for operation of a water tower.
Only a small portion of the property is used for utility purposes. The remainder of the site is heavily wooded with steep slopes. Pritchard Branch flows through a portion of the site from private lots at its northeast border to the Laurel Ridge Apartments on Fordham Boulevard. At one point the stream flows off of the OWASA property onto an adjacent private property before flowing back onto the OWASA property. OWASA maintains a sanitary sewer line adjacent to the stream. A small informal trail follows the sewer easement and is used as an access from the apartments to Hilltop Street and possibly Raintree Lane.
Special Use Permit Restrictions: We believe that the Special Use Permit restriction for the Hilltop site noted above limits the amount of disturbance that would be allowed. We believe that under the provisions of the permit the existing trail could continue as a natural surface path. No parking or other major improvements could be provided outside of the area immediately adjacent to the water tower. If OWASA chose to apply for a modification to the Special Use Permit, such changes could be considered.
CURRENT AND POTENTIAL USES OF THE SITE
Option 1. Take No Action: One option would be to take no action. No parking lot would be built or the existence of the trail publicized by the Town. No easements would be required from OWASA.
Advantages
· The Town would have no expenses for maintenance or construction of a trail.
· Easements would not be required.
· Parking would not be an issue.
· The trail and open space appear to function well for nearby residents in its current state of maintenance. Residents on the south side of the property have been using the informal trail through the Hilltop property for years in order to access the Hilltop Street area.
Disadvantages
· In the event of a major problem to the existing informal trail repairs could not be made.
· The area could not be made available for residents from other parts of Town.
Option 2. Upgrade the Trail and Provide Parking: One possibility would be for the Town to maintain and upgrade the trail for the general public. This would require a parking area and regular maintenance. The terms of the existing Special Use Permit would need to be modified by the Council, at the request of the property owner, through the Special Use Permit Modification process. OWASA staff have indicated a willingness to apply for such a permit, but only if OWASA could be assured that they would not incur any expense.
Advantages
· The Town could improve the existing trail.
· The trail could be signed to encourage more people from the neighborhood to use the area.
· We could invite trail users from other parts of Town to use the property.
Disadvantages
· The Special Use Permit would need to be modified, a multi-month process requiring initiation by OWASA and the payment of an application fee.
· There appears to be no easy location for additional parking. We believe that the only portion of the site that would support a parking lot would be adjacent to the water tower. We do not know if OWASA would support this type of activity so close to their facility.
· The site is surrounded by private property except for the access points to Hilltop Street and Raintree Lane. There is no southern outlet from the OWASA site to any public property or right of way, and southern property owners may believe that such a plan would encourage trespassing on their property. Any legal use for members of the general public would likely be confined to the 600-700 linear feet of stream within the site.
· The Town would be responsible for the costs of building a parking lot and any upgrades to the trail.
· The Town would become responsible for maintenance.
· Increased use of the area could impact nearby residents.
· This would require acquisition of an easement from OWASA.
Option 3. Assume Limited Maintenance Responsibilities: Another possible way for the Town to become involved would be to assume maintenance of the existing informal trail along the stream. The purpose of this level of operation would be to maintain the trail for the residents already using the facility. We would not encourage or publicize the potential use of the trail to the general public because of the lack of parking. We believe, this Option would also require Council action to modify the terms of the existing Special Use Permit. OWASA would need to apply for such a modification.
Advantages
· The Town could improve the existing trail.
· The trail could be signed to encourage more people from the neighborhood to use the area.
Disadvantages
· The Special Use Permit would need to be modified, a multi-month process requiring initiation by OWASA and the payment of an application fee.
· The Town would become responsible for maintenance.
· This would require acquisition of an easement from OWASA.
· Owners of the property to the south may believe that such improvement of the trail would encourage trespassing.
SUMMARY
We believe that provisions in the Special Use Permit already adequately protect the open space attributes at the Hilltop site. The informal trail appears to be well used by nearby residents. At the current time it appears to be in an adequate state of repair for the type of use that is currently found on the site.
The property has no outlet onto a public street except at Hilltop Street or Raintree Lane in the Tandler Subdivision. The site is otherwise surrounded by private property.
If the Council should indicate its desire to allow some degree of increased public access and maintenance within the property we would contact OWASA to determine what concerns they might have. We also believe that if we proceed, additional input of residents who reside near the site should be sought.
We recommend that no action be taken at this time.
1. June 28, 1999. Council agenda item entitled Response to Petition Regarding OWASA Lands as Town Open Space (begin new page 1 ).
2. February 14, 2001, Greenways Commission report entitled Response to Questions: Use of Utility Corridors, Use of OWASA lands, and Methods to Achieve Greenways Master Plan. Please see pages 7-8 of the report (p. 16).
3. Letter from the Westside Neighborhood Association(p. 24).